


Birthday Surprise

by eeveepacini



Category: Degrassi
Genre: Birthday Party, F/M, Surprise Party
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:33:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27109552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eeveepacini/pseuds/eeveepacini
Summary: Eli is tasked with throwing a last-minute birthday party to remember for Marisol. He pulls things together with the help of Katie and other friends.This is dedicated to Zai and takes place in the Elarisol Universe - a few years post-grad in Toronto. I really enjoy writing AUs like this!
Relationships: Eli Goldsworthy/Marisol Lewis, Fiona Coyne/Imogen Moreno, Jake Martin/Katie Matlin
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	Birthday Surprise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BlackSansaStark](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlackSansaStark/gifts).



“You’re completely  _ sure  _ Marisol is gonna be into this?” Eli questioned Katie as he shifted the heavy grocery bags he was struggling to keep his grip on between his two hands.

Katie fumbled with her keys for a moment as she went to unlock the front door. “I’m sure. After a few shots and champagne glasses on New Years she gave me the okay to plan a surprise party for her birthday.” Katie reassured. “In fact, she practically  _ begged _ for a party.” 

Katie, Eli, Marisol and Jake had all moved into a three bedroom apartment together for a while. Katie and Jake slept in a room together, Marisol had a room to herself and Eli claimed the couch most nights. Eli didn’t want to pay rent for a whole room when he spent most of his time in Marisol’s room, on sets, in class or hanging out with his extremely pretentious film school friends.

Eli wasn’t sure. “But she didn’t beg  _ me  _ to do it. We didn’t even hang out on New Years. I got caught up working on a film project and Marisol got drunk and ignored all of my texts.” Eli rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t completely control his smile as he thought about the way he made up with Marisol after that particular tiff. 

“Trust me, I remember her stomping around the party insisting this was going to be the _worst_ _year ever_.” Katie recalled. “It was _mostly_ the champagne speaking, but we both know Mare can be a bit of a Drama Queen when she wants to be.” 

“She prefers Drama  _ Princess. _ ” Eli corrected, then felt his face turn a bit red as he came to the realization that he had revealed semi-private information about one of Eli’s many nicknames for Marisol. They each had a plentiful collection of silly names that sprouted from inside jokes and mushy pet names that they called one another, but Marisol preferred not to use them around other people. She considered using pet names in public to be  _ tacky _ . “So you want me to just put a party together in a day  _ by myself _ ?”

“I meant to make a plan, but… y’know...  _ soccer _ .” Katie threw out an excuse and cleared off some countertop space in the kitchen for Eli to set his groceries down. “I have soccer practice from 5 to 8 tomorrow.  _ Unskippable _ .” 

“So you’ll be able to attend, you just can’t actually  _ help. _ ” Eli pointed out the annoying position Marisol’s best friend was putting him in. “I just wish you had brought this up to me  _ earlier  _ than in the middle of our grocery trip.”

Katie shrugged, pulling the milk out of the bag and placing it in the fridge. “It’s not  _ my  _ fault I forgot Marisol’s birthday was tomorrow. This summer has been blowing by, and I’ve honestly been hitting Jake’s vape pen a bit more than usual. It  _ slipped my mind _ .”

Eli rolled his eyes. He believed Katie’s excuse, but it was still an excuse, and excuses didn’t help Eli pull a party out of thin air. He took out the cake -- one he had gotten for Marisol when Katie’s eyes fell on the bakery and she immediately shared that they needed to plan a surprise party out of nowhere the day before Marisol turned 23. “Do you think she’ll like the cake?”

Katie observed the cake Eli had picked out at the grocery store. It was a simple dark chocolate cake with blue and pink frosted flowers. Not the first choice he would’ve made for his girlfriend, but the options were limited at the local supermarket. “She probably won’t _hate_ it.” Katie remarked. 

“Helpful.” Eli couldn’t help but sass Katie slightly. “Should I contact…?” Eli trailed off.

“Yes.” Katie answered. “I’d dial  _ immediately _ .” 

…

“We’re so honored you chose  _ us! _ ” Imogen smiled as Eli opened the door and let her and Fiona into the apartment. “We've been doing this party planning business for almost a year now. The only issue we've run into is that we have a bit of competition with…” Imogen started, but was interrupted by a deep voice a few feet behind her at the front door.

“Us?” Dallas’ voice seemed to boom in Imogen’s ears, causing her to cover her ears. 

“Ooh, Mike Dallas!" Imogen exclaimed, not straying from her bubbly demeanor. “We meet again!” 

Dallas looked Imogen up and down. “ _ That’s _ how you dress for a party planning consultation?” He said, referring to Imogen’s hot pink rain boots that she had paired with a lacy black dress and a purple denim jacket. Dallas tightened his shirt collar. He  _ did  _ look pretty sharp in comparison.

“Where’s your other D?” Imogen responded by asking Dallas a question.

“He should be…” Dallas spoke only to be cut off by Drew, who rushed up suddenly and nearly collided with Dallas.

“Sorry! I was trying to tie my tie and go up the stairs at the same time. Didn’t quite…” Drew pulled at his necktie, which was  _ incredibly  _ crooked. “work out…” His eyes fell down to focus on trying to fix his tie.

“Why’d you invite us all here?” Fiona inquired. “Usually people only hire  _ one _ party planning service.” She remarked to Eli specifically.

“I need double help with planning a last minute party for Marisol.” Eli twiddled his thumbs nervously. “I know it’s gonna be a big undertaking, but…” 

“We’re  _ in _ .” Drew answered on behalf of himself and Dallas a bit impulsively. Dallas looked at him, but Drew just shrugged. “DD Party Planning has only had three clients since we started. Fiona and Imogen keep stealing our gigs. We could use the... uh, _employment_.”

Dallas shrugged. “I’m in if you are, D.”

“I’m in, but only for Marisol.” Fiona chimed in. Fiona and Marisol had only recently started to find some common ground with one another. It had taken years, but something resembling a friendship was starting to blossom between the two of them, which made Eli happy. 

“Do I get to use glitter?” Imogen asked a completely unsurprising question. 

Eli nodded in agreement. “Just… not too much.”

“I would bet Imogen is about to say there’s no such thing.” Drew added his voice to the conversation. 

“There is no such thing!” Imogen proclaimed just in time. 

Drew laughed. “Predictable as ever." He looked around and realized quickly that he was the only one who hadn't committed to the party-planning gig. "I’m in too, by the way.” He confirmed.

Eli beamed as he got the full confirmation he needed. “We need to get started pronto, then.” Eli addressed all four of his friends — now his  _ party planners _ with authority. “Where do we begin?” 

…

“I think it’s perfect.” Fiona spoke as she walked around the transformed apartment. “It would’ve been better if we had time to plan it at  _ my condo,  _ but _ … _ ” Fiona’s rich and snooty behavior shone through for a moment, but Fiona quickly remedied it with a compliment. “The party looks awesome.” 

“More than awesome. It’s amazing what you can do in just one day.” Eli responded with a smirk. “She’s gonna love it.” 

....

“I can’t believe your car broke down in the soccer field parking lot.” Marisol said as Katie hopped into the passenger seat of her car. “You’re so  _ sweaty... _ ” She said, watching as Katie’s gross, grimy limbs made contact with her car’s interior. 

“No  _ ‘Hey Katie’?  _ No  _ ‘Are you okay’ _ ?” Katie teased. “At least greet me before you talk about how sweaty I am?” 

Marisol rolled her eyes. “Hey Katie,  _ are you okay _ ?” She asked semi-mockingly. _"Seriously!_ Why are you sweating harder than Mo after football practice?”

Katie slapped her best friend’s arm and laughed. “I was playing  _ soccer!  _ Let me live, jeez.”

“Sorry, I’m not trying to be a bitch.” Marisol retracted her attitude. “This is just like, the worst birthday  _ ever. _ ”

Katie feigned surprise. “Oh, your birthday? I forgot. Happy birthday!” She attempted to deceive Marisol, hoping that her mediocre acting skills would be enough to get her by. 

“Not really one worth remembering.” Marisol said. “I mean, I went by The Dot to check in with Eli after I got off work. I wanted to say hi and see if he had anything planned for tonight. His manager said that he didn’t come into work today.”

“Maybe he’s sick?” Katie suggested. 

“I don’t know, maybe. I’m just worried.” Marisol kept her eyes on the road as she headed back to their shared apartment. “What if he’s cheating?” 

“Eli Goldsworthy isn’t the type to do that.” Katie responded. “He’s a bit of a weirdo, but he’s not total  _ scum _ .” Her tone got slightly sour as she clearly recalled getting cheated on. 

Katie wouldn’t wish that pain on her worst enemy now. Admittedly though, when Drew broke her heart and became her worst enemy for a while, Katie definitely caught herself hoping Drew and Bianca’s relationship would meet a very bitter end. Drew and Bianca had broken up long enough for Drew to have that crazy baby daddy drama with Drew and Eli, but they made their way back to one another and were now married. After seeing them in Vegas, Katie figured the two tying the knot for real was just a matter of time. 

“I just hope I don’t have to deal with stupid relationship drama on my birthday.” Marisol sort of whined. “New Years was crap. Remember?” 

“I’m surprised  _ you  _ remember that night.” Katie teased. “You acquainted yourself with quite a bit of champagne in Eli’s absence.” 

Marisol shuddered remembering the hangover that followed that night. That was a bit of a wake-up call to Marisol that drinking heavily didn’t always make for a good night. She  _ definitely _ wasn’t in high school anymore. “I just hope he’s home. I don’t want anything crazy this year, just my buds and my BF.” 

“And maybe some of Jake’s  _ buds _ ?” Katie suggested as a joke. “Out on the balcony, of course.” Marisol had made it quite a strict rule that there would be no smoking inside the apartment. 

“Sounds better than getting drunk and crying.” Marisol remarked as they pulled into a parking spot outside of their building. “There’s a bunch of cars on the street tonight....” She observed, but didn’t pick up on the reason why. 

Katie smiled slightly, knowing the secret.  _ Party guests had already arrived. _ She walked with her best friend to the front door, taking a moment to quickly shoot a text to Jake and Eli letting them know that they had arrived. Katie had no idea what Eli had planned but she hoped it was going to be great. They approached the door and Katie not-so-subtly dropped her keys on the ground. “Ugh, sore muscles… Could you grab those?”

Marisol shrugged and reached down to pick up the keys. Behind her, Katie began filming Marisol on her phone. “Want me to unlock it too?” Marisol said, her words dripping with her trademark sass. 

“Yes please.” Katie smiled knowing Marisol’s entire demeanor would change when she opened that front door. She continued filming as Marisol put the key into the doorknob and turned it…

_ “Surprise!”  _ There was a cacophony of voices, at least 15 guests sort of jammed into the apartment, which was far from roomy. 

Marisol immediately turned around to Katie. “Did you do this?!” She asked her best friend, ready to pull Katie into an embrace. 

“Nope, it was..” Katie trailed off as Eli stepped forward from the crowd. 

“Me. Happy birthday, Mare. You deserve the world but I hope this party is good enough for now.” Eli looked a bit nervous addressing Marisol in front of everyone. The fact that they had paired up was still a bit shocking to some of their peers, even though they’d been together for a  _ while  _ at this point. People still expected Eli and Marisol to hold tight onto their respective high school sweethearts -- Clare and Mo, but the truth was, Eli and Marisol were better for one another. 

Marisol rushed over and hugged Eli, then kissed him on the cheek. “You’re amazing. This is amazing!” She started observing her surroundings a bit more and noticing the details of the decor. “ _ How _ did you do this?” 

“I had a little help from my friends.” Eli wrapped his arm around Marisol and pointed to Fiona, Imogen, Drew and Dallas. All four were hunched over a bowl of cheese dip completely vegging out. 

Imogen shoved the chips she held in her hands into her mouth and offered a muffled “Happy Birthday!” to Marisol. 

“Thank you everyone!” Marisol addressed the whole crowd before turning her attention toward Eli once again. “And thank  _ you _ .”

“For what?” Eli asked, kissing Marisol on the forehead as the rest of the crowd seemed to go back to doing their own things, no longer turning their attention to the couple.

Marisol returned his kiss, placing her lips on his cheek instead. “Being the best. Duh.” 

Eli grinned. “I try my best.” 

Marisol looked around the party and felt extremely grateful. Not only did she have an amazing boyfriend, but everyone in the room she would genuinely consider to be a good friend to her. When Marisol was younger she thought that if she didn’t make connections in high school, she never would. A few years post-grad, though, most of her closest friends were people she really didn’t speak to in high school. Everyone had changed and matured and came into their own though, shedding their skins in their own ways after leaving Degrassi. Not being able to predict what her future held used to scare Marisol. She had always been a bit uptight, liking to plan everything she could. Now, though, she recognized that not knowing what was coming next meant that there were endless possibilities for what would come next. The concept scared her at first, but the more that she let go and let things happen instead of trying to control them, the more fantastic things that came into her life.  _ Eli _ , for example. 

“Would you say this is a good birthday?” Katie asked with her phone still in her hand, filming Marisol. 

“The best.” Marisol responded giving the camera an award-winning smile. “Just… the best.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you Zai for requesting this story from me! I love your creative mind when it comes to shipping and this is definitely not the last time I want to write Elarisol! I really hope I got the tone right. (:


End file.
